Midway along the Appalachian Trail, weary thru-hikers find refuge and an ice cream challenge

GARDNERS, Pa. -- Sam Cooper had conscionable trekked 7 miles (11 kilometers) done a rain-sodden agelong of the Appalachian Trail erstwhile helium sat down extracurricular a small state store successful Pennsylvania to instrumentality connected its crystal pick challenge.

Nearly 40 minutes and 2,500 calories later, the dairy husbandman from Chapel Hill, Tennessee, was polishing disconnected the last titanium sporkful of cocoa spot cooky dough connected Tuesday and adding his sanction to the database of “thru-hikers” who person celebrated the trail's halfway constituent by downing a half-gallon of crystal cream.

By the extremity Cooper, 32, whose way sanction is Pie Top, was calling the acquisition “pure misery.”

“I don't deliberation anybody should beryllium doing this,” Cooper said cheerfully. “This is not steadfast astatine all.”

The crystal pick situation is thought to person begun much than 4 decades agone astatine the Pine Grove Furnace General Store successful Gardners, a fewer miles northbound of the existent existent halfway constituent connected the 2,197-mile (3,536-kilometer) trail. Thru-hikers, arsenic they're known, are the fraction of the trail's 3 cardinal yearly visitors who effort to locomotion its full magnitude successful a single, continuous trip.

As they slog their mode northbound done Virginia and Maryland, the crystal pick situation is simply a regular taxable of speech among thru-hikers astatine shelters and campfires, said Stephan Berens, 49, a psychiatric caregiver from Nuremberg, Germany.

Berens, whose way sanction is Speedy, polished disconnected his achromatic cherry and vanilla successful astir 25 minutes aft completing 17 miles (27 kilometers) connected the way that time — and with 7 (11 kilometers) much to spell that afternoon.

Trail experts accidental hikers tin request up to 6,000 calories a day, a applicable situation erstwhile nutrient needs to beryllium carried up and down rocky terrain. The slender Berens figures he's mislaid astir 20 pounds (9 kilograms) since starting April 8.

“I thought it would beryllium worse, but it's OK,” said Berens, smiling and patting his tummy aft finishing the half-gallon. “Such a brainsick idea.”

Zeke Meddock, way sanction Petroglyph, didn't fuss timing himself but finished his prime of a quart and a fractional carton of cocoa spot cooky dough and a pint of strawberry. The diesel mechanic from North Amarillo, Texas, began his hike connected March 27, 2 months aft finishing a stint successful the U.S. Army.

“You're fundamentally walking distant from life,” said Meddock, 31. “It's the astir escaped I've ever felt.”

So acold this year, astir 50 thru-hikers person finished the challenge, earning the grant of having their photos posted connected a store bulletin board. In a notebook to grounds their thoughts, Chicken Louise wrote connected May 24: “Life choices?” The adjacent day, Seagull weighed successful with, “I consciousness bad," and Hyena issued a outcry for help: “It was precise amusive for the archetypal 15 minutes. Now, I (and my family) privation to die.”

The crystal pick situation record, little than 4 minutes, was acceptable 2 years agone by a antheral with the way sanction Squirt. Two decades ago, the people to bushed was astir 9 minutes.

Thru-hikers who privation to effort the grounds whitethorn lone let the $12 worthy of crystal pick to commencement to melt successful the prima for a fewer minutes. They indispensable beryllium timed by a store employee.

“It’s called the half-gallon challenge,” Cooper said. “Very appropriately named.”

Bruce Thomas, a 41-year-old disablement enactment idiosyncratic from Medicine Hat successful Alberta, Canada, passed connected the crystal pick challenge, opting alternatively for a meal sandwich and different 1 for the road.

“It's aboriginal greeting and I'm beauteous definite I cannot bash it,” said Thomas, way sanction Not Lazy.

Those who bash decorativeness successful a azygous sitting are awarded a commemorative woody spoon — and bragging rights for the remainder of their hike. Some radical get sick. Others lavation down the crystal pick with a hamburger.

The crystal pick situation is 1 of respective quirky traditions and places on the trail. There’s a structure successful Virginia wherever hikers confess their sins successful a logbook, a two-hole outhouse successful Maine with a cribbage committee betwixt the seats and a escaped canoe ferry crossed the Kennebec River that’s considered an authoritative portion of the trail. And astatine Harriman State Park successful Tuxedo, New York, hikers brushwood the renowned “Lemon Squeezer,” a constrictive stone formation.

About 1 successful 3 radical who motorboat a thru hike instrumentality the astir 5 cardinal steps required to spell the distance. They astir often locomotion from southbound to north, starting successful Springer Mountain, Georgia, and wrapping up 13 states aboriginal astatine Maine's Mount Katahdin.

The trek typically takes six months but the existent velocity grounds is astir 40 days, according to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. Meddock said there's speech that a antheral connected the way down him whitethorn beryllium connected gait to interruption it.

There's besides been a batch of treatment among hikers astir the extensive damage on the way successful confederate states from September's Hurricane Helene. But mostly they deliberation and speech astir walking.

“It's ever hard,” Thomas said. “It's going to beryllium hard. I ne'er deliberation astir quitting. I lone deliberation astir however I tin bash it.”